Breakdown of På trods af at vejret var dårligt, havde ekspeditionen overlevet kulden.
være
to be
have
to have
vejret
the weather
dårlig
bad
Questions & Answers about På trods af at vejret var dårligt, havde ekspeditionen overlevet kulden.
What is the difference between using på trods af at and just på trods af?
You use på trods af at because it introduces a full clause with a subject and a verb (vejret var dårligt). If you just want to use a noun phrase without a verb, you drop the at and use the preposition på trods af, like in på trods af det dårlige vejr (despite the bad weather).
Why is the word order havde ekspeditionen instead of ekspeditionen havde in the second half of the sentence?
This happens because of the V2 (verb-second) rule in Danish. The entire first part of the sentence (På trods af at vejret var dårligt) acts as the first block of information. Therefore, the main verb (havde) must come immediately after the comma to take the second position, pushing the subject (ekspeditionen) to the third position.
Could I use selvom instead of på trods af at in this sentence?
Yes, you could say Selvom vejret var dårligt... and the meaning would be almost identical. På trods af at is slightly more formal and emphasizes the contrast a bit more, just like "despite the fact that" versus "even though" in English.
Why does dårlig get a -t ending here (dårligt)?